• History
• Geography
• Climate
• Population

History

The history of León begins with the first settlements of the Romans, Visigoths and Muslims in the Neolithic era.

The city was a bastion during the Reconquest. Great names and decisive events throughout the history of Spain are linked to the province.

Because of its location, the region has always been the cross-roads between the North and the Central Plateau of Castile.

Under the Old Regime, León and Asturias formed one territory. However, in 1822, a reorganization was carried out that separated these two provinces.

The current borders of the province were established in 1833 and have an extension of 15.500 km2 total.

Learn everything about the history of León in great detail on Wikipedia

Geography

The province of León borders on Asturias in the north, on Valladolid and Zamora in the south, on Cantabria and Palencia in the east, and on Orense and Lugo in the west. Furthermore, it is divided in 11 regions:

Climate

The climate of Castile and León is affected by the mountains that surround the whole region.

In fact, in the north of the region are noteworthy foothills rising up from the Cantabrian Mountains and we can also find the Leon mountains (las montañas de León), which lay in the shadow of the Cantabrian mountain range, known in Spanish as the "Cordillera Cantábrica".

The Iberian mountain range (el Sistema Ibérico) can be found ascending from the northeast and in the south appears the "Sistema Central". In the centre of all these mountains lays a high flat plateau.

In the flat central area, the rainfall is of 400-600 mm per year. In the mountain areas, the rainfall is greater and snow is very common during winter. In the areas above 2000m, snow is a permanent feature. This makes León particularly suitable for skiing activities; indeed, it has great winter resorts, of which San Isidro is the best known.

León has a varied flora and fauna because of its differences in altitude and its climate zones: oaks, chestnuts, willows, holly trees and walnut trees, for example, shelter roe deer, wild boars, wolfs and other animals.

The most important rivers of the province are the Sil and the Esla, which are branches of the Duero and Miño respectively.

Population

Currently, the number of inhabitants is:
• In the province of León: 550.000
• In León capital: 150.000

Nevertheless, a lot of municipalities exceed these numbers and have thousands of inhabitants.

Some of these municipalities, like Sahagún, Valencia de Don Juan, Ponferrada and Astorga, constitute very important cultural centres in the province.